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Towns / Illinois

Eureka, Illinois

Eureka is a small town of about 5,100 people in Woodford County, Illinois. It's the county seat. Its population has held about steady since 2020. A typical home costs about 2.8 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Chicago, is about 113 miles away as the crow flies.

County seat

Population
5,129
down 1.7% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$154,300
Woodford County prices up 22% since 2022
Household income
$56,048
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Peoria area
91.2
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
In town
Carle Eureka Hospital
To Chicago
113 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 8.8% below the U.S. average in the Peoria metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 2.8 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Eureka itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in town3 public schools: 1 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byCarle Eureka Hospital is in town and has an emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityChicago is about 113 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Eureka meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$154,300U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 22%Woodford County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$692 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$56,048U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
72%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$3,406 a yearIllinois: $5,298
Homes built before 1940
11%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
7%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
91.2U.S. average = 100 (the Peoria metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 22% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Peoria metro area, not Eureka alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
5,1292020: 5,218
Median age
42.2 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
24%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
19%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
32%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
6%U.S.: 6%
College students
11%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (41%); manufacturing (11%); transportation, warehousing and utilities (10%)
Average commute
32 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
12%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
11%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Carle Eureka Hospital, Eureka, IL, in town. It's a critical access hospital (a small rural hospital with 25 or fewer beds). Medicare hasn't given it a star rating.

Nearest general hospital: Saint Francis Medical Center, Peoria, IL, about 17 miles away. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

3 public schools in Eureka, run by Eureka CUD 140.

Colleges in or next to town: Eureka College (under 1,000 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Illinois's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
78%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
85%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
17°F
July average high
86°F
Days 90°F or hotter
24 a year
Nights at or below freezing
134 a year
Rain and melted snow
37.9 inches a year
Snow
21 inches a year
Elevation
740 feet

Weather stations: Congerville 2NW (7 miles away) and Eureka (1 mile away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Peoria, Chicago.

Woodford County is in a metro area of 250,000 to 1 million people (USDA rural-urban code 2, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Eureka College Campus Historic District.

Campus life. Check Eureka College's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Eureka's history on Wikipedia.

Know Eureka?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Goodfield, IL961 people, 6 miles
  • Deer Creek, IL649 people, 7 miles
  • Secor, IL335 people, 8 miles
  • Congerville, IL500 people, 8 miles
  • Lowpoint, IL (unincorporated)116 people, 11 miles
  • Heritage Lake, IL (unincorporated)1,522 people, 12 miles
  • Carlock, IL593 people, 12 miles
  • Benson, IL403 people, 12 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.